Dentists prepare to give East Texans a day of free dental care

Dentistry from the Heart is a non-profit organization that
has given more than $8 million in free dental care to more than 45,000 people
across the United States.

Organizers hope to add more than 200 East Texans to
that number on Saturday.

Dental hygienist Connie Gulley is one of hundreds of
volunteers who are gearing up to put on the 9th annual Dentistry
from the Heart event in Tyler.

"It's
a day of celebration for what we do and just to help others meet their needs,
either get out of pain, or get their teeth cleaned, or get that filling they've
been trying to get done," Gulley says.

Dentist
Lynette Ogletree says it takes an army of people doing all kinds of things to
pull off the event, "Whether it's money, whether it's food, whether it's their
service, their hands, you know, talking to people out there, people offer all
kinds of help."

Dentists
will offer free cleanings, fillings, and extractions on Saturday. Services
Ogletree says people sometimes put on the back burner.

"Your
blood pressure or your heart you have to go get that taken care of, your teeth,
they can wait, there's no reason why you have to go."

Dentistry
from the Heart is funded by donations and several sponsors. Dentists at Smith
Dental Center in Tyler expect to see between 200 and 250 patients at this year's
event.

"We
always have someone who has tears of joy to see their front teeth restored or
to get that tooth out that's been just killing them," says Gulley.

Changes
in the economy could bring new faces to this year's event.

"This
will be special to some people that last year may not have really thought about
coming to this," Ogletree says. Just thinking about it brings tears to her
eyes.

"It's
just a great day for us to share our gifts with those that need them," Gulley
adds.

They
say seeing joy on patients' faces makes giving dentistry from their heart a no
no-brainer.

Organizers say there are restrictions on who
will be served. Some of those restrictions are: you must be 18 years old, you
must not have high blood pressure, you cannot be taking blood thinners, and
cannot be pregnant.